August 2013

I love having simple, go-to recipes that I can whip up at the last minute, especially for unexpected guests. Or, let’s be honest, for when I’m craving something delicious, but I’m feeling oh so lazy.

This recipe requires very little effort, and yet you are rewarded with salty, smoky almonds with a fragrant yet subtle rosemary flavour. Crunchy and savory, these nuts make a great appetizer or snack, and are an awesome sidekick to any cocktail or glass of wine.

I’m a big Café Medina fan, and have been several times for brunch. In fact, it’s my golden brunch standard that I compare other brunch spots to when traveling. And since I recently had an opportunity to visit during their weekday lunch, I thought it was about time for an update.

The only thing I dislike about Café Medina is the ridiculously long line-ups. But a) they’re lined up for a reason and b) when I was there for a weekday lunch, there was no lineup!

I don’t know about you, but I’m holding onto summer for as long as I can. My freezerful of popsicles should help prolong that summer feeling. Of course, I had to create a paleo friendly popsicle before we roll into September.

Creamy popsicles are my favourite, and these are no exception. These raspberry, coconut milk and vanilla popsicles scream summer, and are a delicious, healthy and refreshing treat to have on hand. Make a few batches of these and you won’t have to say goodbye to summer any time soon.

When I heard that Aphrodite’s sells gluten-free pies, I was excited. I had only ever been there for lunch, years ago, but I knew about Aphrodite’s commitment to organic, local food.

As far as pies go, they sell both regular and gluten-free pies, with the latter being made with brown rice flour. As most of you know, I eat paleo/primal, which in my case means I don’t typically consume rice, and when I do it’s the white variety. But it’s been a long time since I’ve had pie, and it was on my summer bucket list, so I was willing to make an exception.

I love cookbooks. I could (and sometimes do) flip through them endlessly, looking for inspiration and imagining the possibility of all those tasty creations. The thing about being a food blogger though is I don’t often actually get to cook from cookbooks. I rarely follow a recipe, instead I’m always trying to come up with fresh, new ideas for my blog.

So, I was excited to review Against All Grain by Danielle Walker – not only because I’d finally have an excuse to follow a recipe to a T, but also because it’s entirely paleo! No substitutions or adjustments required! There are so many yummy recipes to choose from, and they’re all beautifully photographed. Danielle is the author of the popular blog againstallgrain.com, and this is her debut cookbook.

One of the first questions people always ask me when they hear I’m paleo (primal) is what the heck do I eat? Life without bread seems to boggle minds. Well, here are 348 pages of delicious ideas, plus even some menu suggestions at the back. They range the gamut from breakfast, to appetizers, to mains and all sorts of sweets and goodies. Flipping through this cookbook is bound to get your creative (and digestive!) juices flowing.